Spiritual Math

Before You Start

Print the included crossword puzzle. Print one per family member.

Watch This

Tell your family to watch this clip:

Ask This

What did you notice? (changes, different hair styles, face changes, etc)

Do This

If your family has a place in the home where you are measuring your children’s height as they grow up, gather at that spot and review the years of growth, emphasizing that they ARE growing regardless of their desired height or rate of growth. If you don’t have this place, then find a place and measure everyone in the family.

Ask This

Why do our bodies grow? (It’s how God designed every natural thing from seeds, to animals, and us. Our growth makes us stronger and healthier in order for us to survive in the world.)

Ask This

What do we have to do to help our bodies grow stronger and healthier? (eat, sleep, play/exercise, wash our hands, etc.)

Say This

Do we grow in our relationship with Jesus? (Yes) How do we do that? (church, read the Bible, pray, serve, etc)

Say This

Just like our bodies can be healthy, our relationship with Jesus can be healthy. And just like we eat, sleep, play, etc, to help our bodies, there are some things we can do to help us grow in our relationship with Jesus. Listen to what Peter told some people who were trying to grow stronger in their faith.

Do This

Open your Bible to 2 Peter 1 and slowly read verse 3-7

Say This

That’s a lot! But Peter gave them 8 things they can add to their faith in Jesus. Let’s do a family Crossword Puzzle.

Do This

Give everyone a pencil and a copy of the crossword puzzle. Your job is to guide them through the definitions and let them figure out the words that go in the boxes. Use this as a teaching time to help them understand the principles behind each word. (answers below)

Say This

Great job! Now our challenge is to work on having these qualities in our family. I’m going to be watching to see when these show up.

Suggestion

You could choose one of these per week and work on that quality, looking for ways to practice and highlight.

Pray This

Heavenly Father, we are so grateful for your word and how You show us what we need to do to grow in our relationship with you. Please help all of us to look for and celebrate these qualities when they show up and to work on the ones that we may be missing. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!